


On Pirozhki and Katsudon

by Zelinxia



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Comfort Food, Family, Friendship, Gen, Hasetsu was not that bad to Yuri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-30
Updated: 2016-11-30
Packaged: 2018-09-03 06:41:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8701468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zelinxia/pseuds/Zelinxia
Summary: Yuri knows what Agape is, but not what it means to him. As his motivator for the Onsen on Ice competition, Yuuko comes up with a solid idea that helps him find inspiration."What is your favorite comfort food?"





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ProPinkist](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProPinkist/gifts).



> Happy Birthday, ProPinkist! I hope you like it. :)

“Hey Yurio-kun, are you still having trouble finding what Agape means to you?”

Yuuko’s question dances in the soft spring wind as Yuri continues to stretch his quads, after his long interval runs on the steep hills of the historical castle site. From up here, the scent of the sea rolls in and mixes with the cherry blossoms in bloom. It’s Yuuko’s idea for him to seek nature in the hopes of finding inspiration for his short program’s theme. This is far more practical than Viktor shooing Yuri to visit the local temple for spiritual training. What a pain. 

“I’m trying,” he says.

“Hmmm.” She taps her chin. “From my understanding, it is a very broad concept.”

Yes. Yes, it is. He knows it is about unconditional love, something constant. But beyond that, it remains frustrating. Not even Viktor can break it down from the blanket statement of “deep feelings”. 

Yuuko lights up. “How about thinking from a very specific view?”

“Like what?”

“What is your favorite comfort food?”

At those words, he thinks of Yuuri at dinner, poking at his plate of steamed vegetables pathetically. His rival, always yearning for a fresh bowl of pork cutlets, katsudon, would observe Yuri gulping his bowl down with clear envy. Then one night, Yuuri had slammed his fist on the table, and declared that his Eros is katsudon. What an embarrassment.

Yuri scowls, lands into a split, and hastily rotates between stretching his left and right sides.

“Don’t tell me you think _his_ image for Eros is amazing.” 

“Eh? Yuuri’s? Oh wow.” She laughs, hard, and has to clutch her ribs to catch herself. “I forgot about that for a bit. No, no, I wasn’t thinking about his – interesting focus for his theme.”

Now his curiosity is piqued. “…Go on.”

“What I was going with it, is that comfort food always does its job when you need it the most. You can rely on it, right? So then, let’s start from your favorite.”

“Too easy,” he says. Then, longingly, “Pirozhki.” 

Warm, freshly baked buns glazed in rich egg, then filled to the brim with ground meat and cabbages. Yuri always devour them at any opportunity he gets, whether it’s from home or stopping by a shop for snacks. As a younger boy, he had no trouble eating as much as he wanted. He has yet to stop growing, and his metabolism is higher with age and the demands of his sport. Yakov, however, always warns him to cut down on pirozhki the day before competition. Some of this, he conveys to Yuuko.

Clapping once, she says, “Perfect! Here in Japan, we have something similar. Although we use slightly different fillings like boiled eggs. How about we go get some now before we have to head back to the rink?”

Yuri has only been here in Hasetsu for less than a week, so he is still getting accustomed to the flavors of their local food. Katsudon is always fine, though, and in private, he gives Yuuri’s mother his compliments, and despite the strained language barriers, Hiroko understands and beams. But he can’t deny he’s been missing and craving for pirozhki.

“Sure,” he says.

“Great! We’ll split one so you won’t get bad cramps during practice later -” – hah, he is sure he can eat a whole one, or two, and still practice just as hard as usual with Viktor – “- and who knows, maybe eating something close to comfort will open up your inspiration.”

Yuri slips on his hood, stands up, and because Yuuko cannot directly see it, strains his mouth in a small smile. Sure, she is bizarre sometimes (who gets terrible nosebleeds but does not panic at all?!) – but she is a good motivator, and her ideas are sound. His stay isn’t terribly lonesome and alienating.

The local version is tasty, but of course cannot hold a candle to the ones back in Russia. It helps that, on their way back to Ice Castle, they run into some street cats. 

To his chagrin, though, Viktor orders him and Yuuri to meditate under waterfalls.

* * *

_(seven months later)_

Yuri still has trouble shaking off that his grandpa did not show up yesterday for his short program. And yet, when he sees the old and tiny green car rattling up the streets by the hotel, he grabs his pack and runs.

“Grandpa!” He makes sure not to hug him so hard this time.

“Yuratchka, my boy,” he greets. 

He lowers Yuri, but his big smile fades. His head bows.

“I’m sorry I missed your performance yesterday. I got lost and it was getting late. I figured, I would have trouble getting ahold of you, so I had no choice but to head back home.”

Of course, his grandpa wouldn’t just forget and not attend. He hates seeing him sad. 

“It’s okay!” Yuri shouts. “As long as you stay around in the city, you can make it for my free skate program today, right?”

Grandpa nods with a smile. “Why of course, my boy. Here, to make up for lost time, I want you to eat some pirozhki.”

In the car is a paper bag. Yuri takes one out, wrapped in tinfoil, so that it could still be warm enough to consume. He breaks it in half, and in a delightful surprise, sees it is filled with steamed rice, eggs, and slab of pork cutlet.

“Oh wow. Grandpa, did you make katsudon-style pirozhki? For me?” 

“That I did. You sounded like you missed katsudon a lot, so I tried to find a recipe at the library. Yuratchka, is this more to your liking?”

He inhales it. While it has been months since he had left Japan, he still remembers how Hiroko’s katsudon tastes like. There is one particular seasoning that is, understandably, missing in the pirozhki. But it hits the spot, combining the best of both dishes.

“Pork cutlets or not, Grandpa, your pirozhki are always good, and what I always think of when I have cravings,” he says.

“Good, good. I’m glad.” Grandpa clasps Yuri on his shoulder. “But don’t eat too fast. You don’t want to get sick before your program today.”

Even though he is not there, he can feel Yakov nodding in agreement.

“Not you too, Grandpa!”

**Author's Note:**

> In Ep. 8, Yuri gushes about katsudon to his grandpa. It has been seven months since Ep. 3! That stood out to me, since I feel like it shows that for his short time in Hasetsu, Yuri had some pleasant memories.


End file.
